God and Hard Times
Who am I to wonder where God is when I really need Him? I pray daily. Even if sometimes it's just for the meal I'm about to eat. I ask for forgiveness, Thank Him for the food and ask Him to bless it to the nourishment of my body, ask for blessed health and ask for financial opportunity in these troubled Obamanomics times.
We've all heard the expression: "It seems like my prayers don't even make it to the ceiling".
I feel that way now. It's been a LONG time since I've had that telepathic clairsentient message from God. It's been even longer since I've had that spontaneous answer to my prayer. I've had prayers answered, PHYSICALLY, in less than 30 seconds.
When I was struggling and single, I had no bed to sleep on. All I had was an old 6" thick Futon to sleep on. After a month of laying on this padding, I was waking to the 15th round of a fight with Mike Tyson every morning. I use to pray before I left my apartment every day. One morning I prayed that God might bless me with a bed. I was in so much pain from sleeping on this really bad futon it made prayer headlines (Front page, above the crease). I got up off of my knees, went to leave out the front door and the apartment manager was there loading a fairly nice bed w/ box springs into a U-Haul trailer to take to the dump. I said, I'll take it. He was happy to dump it off on me.
30 seconds and my prayer is answered.
But what about Joseph? (Genesis 39:7-12) God allows Joseph to suffer in prison for being righteous. Joseph rejects Potiphar's seductive wife and she got her vengeance by falsely accusing Joseph of raping her.
Joseph spends 8 years in prison for doing the right thing. Of course the story has a happy ending (if you don't mind spending 8 years in prison) as Joseph becomes the Prime Minister of Egypt. He uses his Clairvoyant talents to predict and help avoid the disastrous results of a draught in Egypt.
My point is this. Stories like Joseph and Job are in the Bible to remind us that Life is not fair. We have free will, but it's only to show God where our heart's lay. We may think God is not fair. Why make Abraham wait until he is 99 before he comes through on his promise to bless Sarah with a child? Does that fall under the sense of humor category?
Sometimes God has blessed me when I didn't deserve it. Other times I've (Literally) shouted from a mountain top: "FATHER I NEED YOUR HELP", only to come down from the mountain to a phone call saying I was being terminated. (After I had just saved a patent's life)
The idea of God answering prayers stopped making sense to me several years ago. Garth Brooks once said that the best prayers are the ones God doesn't answer. If that's the case, I've got greatness coming my way. I'm not comparing myself to Joseph, Job or Abraham, but I've asked and haven't received in a long long long time.
Perhaps this is my challenge of attrition. Things have seldom come easy for me. I believe in God and The Son, Christ Jesus. I believe the Holy Spirit can and has helped me. I am a sinner and I've been a preacher; But if You're reading this Lord, I could use a blessing.
We've all heard the expression: "It seems like my prayers don't even make it to the ceiling".
I feel that way now. It's been a LONG time since I've had that telepathic clairsentient message from God. It's been even longer since I've had that spontaneous answer to my prayer. I've had prayers answered, PHYSICALLY, in less than 30 seconds.
When I was struggling and single, I had no bed to sleep on. All I had was an old 6" thick Futon to sleep on. After a month of laying on this padding, I was waking to the 15th round of a fight with Mike Tyson every morning. I use to pray before I left my apartment every day. One morning I prayed that God might bless me with a bed. I was in so much pain from sleeping on this really bad futon it made prayer headlines (Front page, above the crease). I got up off of my knees, went to leave out the front door and the apartment manager was there loading a fairly nice bed w/ box springs into a U-Haul trailer to take to the dump. I said, I'll take it. He was happy to dump it off on me.
30 seconds and my prayer is answered.
But what about Joseph? (Genesis 39:7-12) God allows Joseph to suffer in prison for being righteous. Joseph rejects Potiphar's seductive wife and she got her vengeance by falsely accusing Joseph of raping her.
Joseph spends 8 years in prison for doing the right thing. Of course the story has a happy ending (if you don't mind spending 8 years in prison) as Joseph becomes the Prime Minister of Egypt. He uses his Clairvoyant talents to predict and help avoid the disastrous results of a draught in Egypt.
My point is this. Stories like Joseph and Job are in the Bible to remind us that Life is not fair. We have free will, but it's only to show God where our heart's lay. We may think God is not fair. Why make Abraham wait until he is 99 before he comes through on his promise to bless Sarah with a child? Does that fall under the sense of humor category?
Sometimes God has blessed me when I didn't deserve it. Other times I've (Literally) shouted from a mountain top: "FATHER I NEED YOUR HELP", only to come down from the mountain to a phone call saying I was being terminated. (After I had just saved a patent's life)
The idea of God answering prayers stopped making sense to me several years ago. Garth Brooks once said that the best prayers are the ones God doesn't answer. If that's the case, I've got greatness coming my way. I'm not comparing myself to Joseph, Job or Abraham, but I've asked and haven't received in a long long long time.
Perhaps this is my challenge of attrition. Things have seldom come easy for me. I believe in God and The Son, Christ Jesus. I believe the Holy Spirit can and has helped me. I am a sinner and I've been a preacher; But if You're reading this Lord, I could use a blessing.
posted by Ace at
5:34 PM
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